Lakshmi
Honoured alongside: Ganesha · Kubera · Saraswati · Rama's return
This is the one most people are unsure about: on Diwali night it is Lakshmi who is worshipped, with Ganesha invoked first as the remover of obstacles. Kubera is honoured with her in business households, and Saraswati in parts of the east. Rama's return to Ayodhya is why the lamps are lit, but the puja itself is Lakshmi's.
What the puja consists of
- Clean the house completely — Lakshmi is said to enter only where there is order — and draw a rangoli at the threshold.
- Set Lakshmi and Ganesha on a red cloth, Ganesha to her right, with a kalash and coins before them.
- Perform the puja during pradosh kaal, the hour and a half after sunset, on the amavasya.
- Offer lotus or marigold, batasha, kheel, coconut and the season's sweets; account books, keys or tools are placed for blessing.
- Light a row of diyas at the door, on the sill and along the terrace — one is left burning through the night.
- Aarti, then prasad, then the lamps are seen to before anything else.
Core chants
Named, not printed — each links to a recording where the catalogue has one.
- Paath
Shri Suktamश्रीसूक्तम्
The Vedic hymn to Shri, recited during the abhishekam of Lakshmi — the formal core of Lakshmi Puja.
Not in the catalogue yet — ask at your local temple or gurdwara, or learn it from a teacher in your tradition.
- Mantra
Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namahॐ श्रीं महालक्ष्म्यै नमः
The seed mantra for japa, commonly 108 times during the puja.
Not in the catalogue yet — ask at your local temple or gurdwara, or learn it from a teacher in your tradition.
- Stotra
Kanakadhara Stotramकनकधारा स्तोत्रम्
Shankaracharya's hymn, recited for sustained rather than sudden abundance.
Not in the catalogue yet — ask at your local temple or gurdwara, or learn it from a teacher in your tradition.
- Mantra
Om Gam Ganapataye Namahॐ गं गणपतये नमः
Ganesha is invoked before Lakshmi in every version of the puja.
- Aarti
Om Jai Lakshmi Mataॐ जय लक्ष्मी माता
The household aarti of Diwali night. The collections below carry it alongside the other household aartis.
- Aarti
Om Jai Jagdish Hareॐ जय जगदीश हरे
Sung after the Lakshmi aarti in most north Indian households.
It differs where you are. Five days, and each one has its own deity: Dhanteras for Dhanvantari and Kubera, Naraka Chaturdashi for Krishna's victory, Lakshmi Puja on amavasya, Govardhan Puja or Bali Pratipada the next day, and Bhai Dooj for Yama. Bengal worships Kali rather than Lakshmi on the same night; Jains mark Mahavira's nirvana; Sikhs keep Bandi Chhor Divas for Guru Hargobind's release from Gwalior.
This page is editorial context, not religious instruction. Where your family, region or lineage does it differently, that is the version to follow — ask an elder or a teacher in your tradition rather than a website.